Dell Precision M3800 Owner's Review

I don't think I completely understand this post, but I'll do my best to respond:

1. Acronis might not support GPT disks and might be failing for that reason even if it's showing the wrong error message. It could also be failing because of the mSATA cache setup. I haven't used Acronis in a long time, so I'm not sure. But try using the Macrium Reflect Free application I mentioned above. It's free, after all.

2. I'm not suggesting using a recovery method. I'm suggesting using a Windows 8.1 ISO to create a bootable USB flash drive, not a bootable partition on the disk itself. That won't work. Once you've got a bootable USB flash drive, you can simply remove your existing hard drive and cache, install your new mSATA SSD, and install Windows from scratch. That's the cleanest way to go.

3. I said to disable Smart Response (in Rapid Storage), not Rapid Start. Those are two completely different things. Either one can be re-enabled easily in the appropriate application, but you'll want to disable them before you clone your drive over, because once you remove the cache unit to install the mSATA SSD, it obviously won't be working anymore. But yes, if you're going to keep using your spinning hard drive for now, leave it on.

 

mmm

yep i made a bootable windows usb drive and i can't get it started , it offers me always to repair the hdd .....

by the way , may i confirm that the Samsung MZ-MTE250BW Disque Flash Interne 240 Go Sata III: Amazon.fr: Informatique is ok for the xps/precision ? it's 5V , can't recall if the liteon is 3V or 5V ?

Thks again !!

 

It sounds like you're not creating the bootable flash drive correctly, or you're creating a Windows rescue drive, which isn't the same thing as an installation drive. Make sure you follow the instructions for using the Rufus application perfectly in Option 1 of this guide: UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive - Create in Windows.

Yes, that SSD will work. mSATA is a standard, so any mSATA SSD will work in any mSATA slot. You don't have to worry about voltages.

 

i just made a clone partition on an external drive with EasUs ...., then replaced the internal one by this one : no go !!! it keeps proposing recovery options !!!

on my boot option i'm seeing "uefi OS" but , no go !!!

I'm going to trash this thing omg !! this is not my first instal !!! what am i doing wrong !! can't we assume that if i take a HDD , make a clone of the partition (to avoid the 930GB thing) and then place it inside instead of the previous one would work ?

i disabled the intel thing , i'm gonna try to start in legacy rom mod ....but this is the worst HDD managemnt i seen , for real , partitions everywere .....why not a simple system with a 256sdd and an empty HDD slot ? !!

 

Ok, I'm now a little confused by you here. You originally came here saying Acronis wasn't working, so I recommended Macrium Reflect Free -- twice. You then tried EaseUS instead and that didn't work either, so now you're about to trash it. Why don't you try....Macrium Reflect Free?? You could also try actually using the recovery options. It might detect the cloned OS and make the changes required in order to actually boot from it. But as a general note, if you come here asking for ideas because your own ideas aren't working, you might actually want to try some of the ideas you get from other people before you trash the system.

You also said you cloned just the OS partition. If that's true, that definitely won't work. GPT-formatted disks used in UEFI systems require three partitions to exist on the disk BEFORE the OS partition, so if you only cloned the OS partition, that's definitely at least part of the reason it's not working. As for why there are so many partitions, when Windows is installed on a GPT disk for a UEFI system, the minimum requirements are an EFI System Partition, a Windows Recovery partition, a Microsoft Reserved Partition, and the OS partition. Anything beyond that is extra stuff Dell has added for things like diagnostics (on systems that don't have UEFI and therefore don't have diagnostics embedded in the motherboard), system image recovery (so they don't have to provide Windows install media customized with their system's drivers), and Intel Rapid Start. I agree it's complicated, but that's how computers are. At least on the Windows side all of the partitions are actually visible, compared to the Mac side where they've got a recovery partition that isn't even visible when you view the disk with their own partition management tools.

Macrium Reflect Free will allow you to clone the disk -- with ALL of its partitions -- but resize the OS partition so that it fits on your target drive. So again, try Macrium Reflect Free.

Or again, figure out what you're doing wrong with creating the Windows installation USB flash drive and just do a clean install so you can avoid all of these frustrations with cloning a disk.

 

Jphughan , can't i just :

1) stop the intel storage thing to make the msata (the dell one ) become regular
2) install the new one (empty)
3) boot on the regular drive
4) instakl and run a acronis like software and clone that drive to the new msata
5) take off this old hdd and put my 1TB data drive and voila ?

that was my plan that's why i'm trying on regular hdd for now to be pre test the process but : no go until now ...

 

I just edited my post above after re-reading what you said. So you might want to read it again.

Disabling Intel Rapid Storage acceleration does not make the mSATA device an independent device; that's done by changing the SATA operation in the BIOS. Disabling acceleration means that when you boot from an mSATA device, you won't have an Intel driver looking for a cache unit that isn't there and potentially causing problems as a result.

But if you disable acceleration AND change the SATA operation, then yes you SHOULD be able to clone from your spinning drive to the new mSATA SSD -- if you perform the cloning operation correctly, making sure to clone the extra partitions required for GPT disks rather than only the OS partition. But I've never done it myself on a UEFI system, so I'm not completely certain.

 

ok thks ...yep for the intel thing it looks like we have ption on the intel storage software to stop the "performance boost via msata" i don't k now if it's enought or do i have to go also on bios , if yes , what to do in the bios ?

time for me to wiki UEFI and re learn my .... been away for 2 years and voila !

Edit : i jus re read your post and you're right , i cloned only the os , so you suggets i clone all the partitions ? sounds mlogical , might try this tomorw ...

thks again for your time amigo and excuse my slow motion it's 4 oclok in the morning and i spent 24 hours on this system , doing stress test , dpc latency checking , real recording stress test and all ...for finally validating this for my student (SAE ) for now struglling with the "easyest thing" to do ...restaur !

 

I said multiple times, in the BIOS you need to change the SATA Operation mode -- from Intel Smart Response to AHCI. Reading about GPT and UEFI certainly isn't a bad idea, but it shouldn't be necessary to clone your drive correctly. Try just following the instructions I keep posting.

 

roger that thks .....

i'm ordering the msata and will practice on a WD blue tomorw , thks again !!

so i will stay in ACHI then ...the smart respone is only with "hybride" set up ?